A new approach to in-situ Co3O4 nanostructure decorated free-standing carbon foam derived from phenolic resin for high-performance supercapacitor. (December 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Sharma, Anushi; Kumar, Rajeev; Muchhala, Dilip; Shafeeq, Muhamed; Dwivedi, Neeraj; Gupta, Gaurav; Mondal, D.P.
• Is Part Of: Materials today communications. Volume 33(2022)
• Publication Date: 2022-12
• Subjects: Phenolic resin, Carbon foam -- Co3O4 nanoparticles -- Decoration -- Specific capacitance; Materials science -- Periodicals; 620.11
• DOI: 10.1016/j.mtcomm.2022.104250
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2352-4928

Abstract

Abstract: Herein, a novel method to fabricate a cobalt oxide (Co3 O4 ) nanostructure decorated with lightweight free-standing carbon foam (CF) has been reported. Primarily, the freestanding CF was fabricated via a polyurethane (PU) foam replica method using phenolic resin, followed by oxidation stabilization and finally carbonization at 1000 ºC in an inert atmosphere. After that different contents of Co3 O4 nanoparticles (NPs) were decorated on free-standing CF using the in-situ hydrothermal method. The developed foams have been extensively studied for various electrochemical characteristics including cyclic voltammetry (CV), capacitance, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) in 1 M KOH solution using a three-electrode system. The structural and morphological investigation of foams was examined by XRD, Raman, and SEM. It is observed that Co3 O4 NPs are uniformly decorated on CF and the electrochemical performance of CF is improved synergistically. Consequently, the specific capacitance (302 F g −1 at mV s −1 ) was greatly enhanced when the CF was decorated with 10 % Co3 O4 NPs. Moreover, an asymmetrical two-cell supercapacitor composed of CF-10Co3 O4 positive electrode and CF negative electrode exhibited a specific capacitance of 164 F g −1 at a current density of 0.5 A g −1 . The device (CF-10Co3 O4 //CF) can deliver a high energy density of 44 Wh kg −1 at the power density of 350 W kg −1 . The high specific capacitance and large energy density demonstrate the potential application of carbon-Co3 O4 decorated foams in compact and lightweight supercapacitors. Graphical Abstract: ga1 Highlights: Free-standing carbon foam was prepared from phenolic resin via the PU foam impregnation method. Carbon foam was decorated with Co3 O4 nanoparticles using the in-situ hydrothermal method. The carbon foam decorated with 10% Co3 O4 NPs delivered a maximum specific capacitance of 302 F g −1 at 5 mV s −1 . The asymmetric supercapacitor CF-10Co3 O4 //CF showed a specific capacitance of 164 F g −1 at a current density of 0.5 A g −1 . The energy density of CF-10Co3 O4 //CF asymmetric supercapacitor is 44 Wh kg −1 at the power density of 350 W kg −1 . The free-standing carbon foam could be a potential candidate for energy storage applications.